


Day Two Hundred Thirty-Two || Slumlord

by 365daysofsasuhina



Series: 365 Days of SasuHina 2019 [232]
Category: Naruto, Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-05 20:56:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20279698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysofsasuhina/pseuds/365daysofsasuhina
Summary: There's always parts of town you do anything to avoid...you never know who you'll run into. But, if you're desperate...





	Day Two Hundred Thirty-Two || Slumlord

Not all of their journey is so glamorous. Though a great deal of it is spent on the road, camping off on bedrolls on whatever dry, even ground they can find, the group occasionally makes their way through towns. Inns are a welcome respite, but cost a pretty penny in turn. The better the conditions, the more expensive their stays. And eventually, their coin purses start to feel a bit...light. Work while on the move is difficult to find, let alone that which pays well enough to make it worth their while to stop.

So when the group decides even the cheapest of the inns of their latest towns is too much to pay for, they weigh their options.

“We could just keep going through town and camp off the roadside,” Sasuke offers, looking unbothered. “What’s the difference?”

The light mage, however, protests. A night in a proper bed is a relief for Itachi, and helps make it all the easier for her to keep him healthy as they make their way to the capital.

“Is there a...cheaper part of town…?” Hinata asks.

“None that’s likely both in our price range, and safe,” Sasuke mutters. “Heading into the slums is just asking for trouble. Sure, we could probably handle it given our ven, but I’d rather not take the chance.”

“Well...maybe we could just ride through? Scope things out?”

He sighs. In truth, he knows it won’t be worth it. Sleeping somewhere rat and flea-infested won’t be the restful night of sleep the light mage is thinking of. “...all right, fine. We’ll ride through. But do _not_ get off your horse. Be ready to bolt if anyone gives the word. It’s not safe.”

The rest of the group nods gravely, keeping astride their mounts as they head to the western edge of the city. As they leave the brightly-lit main thoroughfare behind...it becomes clear Sasuke knew exactly what he spoke of.

The streets begin to narrow, cobblestone quickly abandoned for dirt with deep ruts from carts. Buildings almost seem to loom forward over the roadways, dirty and dark with many a broken, boarded window. Sallow-faced people look to them with a mix of fear, suspicion, and yet a glimmer of greed.

Hinata can’t help but keep a bit of ven at her fingertips.

They do eventually come upon an inn, but just one look tells them it’s hardly a place they should consent to. Like the other structures, it clearly lacks in upkeep and repair. A few beggars sit along the front, dressed in rags and rattling their tin cups for alms.

“So, believe me now?” Sasuke mutters, glancing to his companions.

But before they can agree to move on, a man steps out from the inn, tailed by a few others. Looking a bit out of place, he’s dressed in far better shape than his compatriots, giving a grin that flashes a tooth of gold.

“Well well, what ‘ave we ‘ere? A few customers for me ‘umble inn?”

“Just passing through,” Sasuke bites back, clearly not in the mood for whatever this one’s scheming. “Now, if you’ll excuse us -”

“Ah, but what’s the rush? Forgive me, milord...but it’s rather clear the lot a’ you’s been on the road for quite some time! Why not take a night to freshen up ‘fore you’s back on the ol’ path, eh?”

“Forgive _me_, but it looks like if you want to run an inn of any repute, you’d best invest in _it_ rather than your threads, slumlord.”

Rather than take offense, the man just lifts arms in a gesture of airy disregard. “I’ve many a’ property this side a’ town, milord. S’not an easy thing to keep up so much property! But I always do right by me patrons, yes I do.”

“I had a feeling you were the reason so much of this part of town looks rat-gnawed. You charge these folks into the gutter, and don’t invest a penny back into the places you rent them. It’s a wonder they’ve not all caught the plague living like this,” Sasuke snaps.

...at that, the man’s grin fades. “...s’no concern a’ yours how I run my business,” he growls. “If you’ve no intent on stayin’, get t’hell out.”

“I’d love to, if you’d move from the fore of my horse.”

The slumlord sneers, and for a moment everyone tenses, awaiting the breakout of conflict. But then the group steps aside, letting the traveling party pass. Nonetheless, Sasuke keeps a sharp eye on them, Hinata doing the same.

“...what a horrible man,” she murmurs once out of earshot. “How can bhe treat those people so…?”

“After the fall of the Summit, the governments of the lands fell into disarray. Much of the hard work put into structuring and regulating places like this were left to fall apart...and people like that rose to claim the pieces. It’s why it’s so important the Elemental Summit is put back into place,” the lux mage replies softly. “Without the overarching order, the scattered remnants have struggled to keep things from falling into chaos. The gap between the rich and the poor grows...and you end up with slums like this one.”

“And you’ll just magically save the world from itself, will you?” Sasuke bites back.

“It won’t be easy...but it _is_ necessary.”

“Any change takes time,” Hinata offers, taking the healer’s side. “But that’s why the sooner we start, the sooner we can hopefully start getting things back into a more peaceful, balanced state.”

“Good luck undoing over a century’s worth of corruption.”

“Well...we have to start somewhere.”

With that, the four of them move to the markets, stocking up a bit before heading back out of town through the opposite gate. They get in a few more miles before pulling off into a copse of trees, setting up camp as is reflexive by now. As usual, Sasuke heads the effort with Hinata’s help as the healer tends to his brother.

“...did you mean what you said back there?”

“Hm?” Looking up from the fire he’s tending, Sasuke gives Hinata a glance. “...what did I say?”

“You sounded so...defeatist when we spoke about reassembling the Summit. Are you...really so jaded?”

That earns a scoff and a scowl. “...my entire life has been lived in the chaos after the Rift. My family was forced to flee when I was barely a babe when civil war broke out. We lived in seclusion from then on, separated from our kinsmen and barely allowed to show our faces in any town. Even now, crowds make me nervous. I don’t see how this many years of prejudice against our people can be overcome.”

Hinata considers that quietly for a time. “...I was displaced when a little older. I was maybe...eight? Nine? Our home was raided after my father’s work was discovered. We fled...and my mother died protecting us, holding the men after us at bay. For a while...I too was hopeless. I lived my life in secret, on my father’s estate. But then...I met you. And we started this journey. And while we’ve seen some terrible things, l-like today...we’ve also seen things that give me hope. And...now that I have it, I can’t let go of it. We have to try. Otherwise...n-nothing will ever change. After so long living the same way...I can’t go back to it. So I’ll give this my best effort...or I’ll die trying. Going back to how things were...would be a fate worse than death, to me.”

It’s Sasuke’s turn to go quiet and think. In his life, things just always seem to go wrong. The scattering of his people, the slowly-growing illness in his brother, the desperation in his family. It all feels so unfair...and so hopeless…!

...and yet...he’s here, isn’t he? Putting his faith in this healer, a near-extinct breed, to save his most precious person. If he really was hopeless...would he have come this far?

But healing one person...and healing a world...it’s not the same. This woman may be the very last of her kind. Can they really turn a tide this long-standing, this deep? It just seems...impossible.

“...well...I’ll believe it when I see it,” he concedes, wanting to let the subject rest. The whole evening has him a bit on edge, and he really just wants to sleep it off. “We’ll hardly see it done in one night.”

“No, we won’t.” Pausing, Hinata murmurs, “I’ll take first watch. Get some rest.”

“But -?”

“It’s clear you need it,” she counters gently with a smile. “I’ve some energy in me yet. Sleep.”

Sighing in acceptance, Sasuke settles atop his bedroll. Rest might not come easy, but...well, nothing really does, does it?

**Author's Note:**

> Back into the fantasy verse we go! This “series” hasn’t really had an order to it like a few others - it’s been a bit more sporadic, so apologies if it’s ever unclear. But then again, I never had much intention of making series within the series when I started, lol
> 
> Sasuke is a bit of a sourpuss in this verse, but for good reason. Elves have gotten the short end of the stick for quite some time. But, with any luck (and a lot of hard work), things will change! He just needs to have a little faith!
> 
> Okay AO3ers, you might notice this post is early! I'm leaving on a trip tomorrow and won't have net to post, so you're getting all FIVE SHM posts and all FIVE 365 Days posts TODAY! That does mean you won't see posts from me until Thursday, but I hope dumping them all isn't too inconvenient - I need the AO3 links for the mirror posts I'm queueing on Tumblr. Thanks for your patience, and thanks for reading!


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